Chicago police say overall crime in the city is down 34 percent

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Chicago started off the year on a better note, in terms of city violence.

Chicago finished January 2014 with 43 percent less shootings and cut the number of murders in half compared to January of last year, according to the Director of News Affairs Adam Collins.

5 Shot in South Side Lounge

Five people were shot, one of them fatally, while attending a birthday party at a South Side lounge Saturday. Regina Waldroup reports. (Published Saturday, Jan. 25, 2014)

Chicago police also say overall crime in the city is down 34 percent.

Those percentages translate to 68 fewer shootings in the city compared to January 2013 and 20 fewer murders.

3 injured in Shooting on Dan Ryan Expressway

Three people were injured during a shooting on the Dan Ryan Expressway early Saturday morning, offiicals said. Regina Waldroup reports. (Published Monday, Jan. 20, 2014)

“After historic lows in crime and violence in 2013, January saw continued progress, yet much more work remains to be done and no one will rest until everyone in Chicago enjoys the same sense of safety,” said Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy. “We are continuing to make progress, like the near all-time lows we saw last February and March, but it will become more challenging without better laws that help keep illegal guns out of our communities and punish the criminals who carry them.”

The city ended January with two shootings Friday.

A man, allegedly attempting to burglarize a home in the 2000 block of West 21st street, was shot by homeowner, police said.

The offender, believed to be 31 years old, was pronounced dead at the scene.

The shooting remains under investigation, according to authorities.

Later Friday, two people were shot in the 1800 block of West 19th Street.

Police said the two men were driving westbound on West 19th Street when they heard multiple shots.

The 28-year-old driver of the car was shot in the right arm and listed in serious condition at University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago, according to Chicago Police News Affairs Office Jose Estrada.

A 22-year-old passenger was shot in the head and listed in critical condition at University of Illinois Medical Center.

Officials said the shooting appears to be gang-related.

Chicago started the month of February with at least three other shootings early Saturday morning.

Around 12:45 a.m., two men were shot while driving in the city’s Logan Square neighborhood.

Police said two men were driving west on Armitage Avenue in a light-colored sedan when shots were fired in their direction from a light-colored SUV near Kedzie Avenue.

The driver of the sedan, a 34-year-old man, was shot twice in the head and listed in critical condition.

A 34-year-old passenger suffered a graze wound to the head and was listed in stable condition. Both men were transported to Stroger Hospital, police said.

Both men have known gang ties and the shooting is believed to have been gang-related, officials said.

Less than an hour later, two men were standing in the 7500 block of South Rhodes Avenue when a dark-colored SUV drove by and someone in the vehicle fired shots, Estrada said.

A 20-year-old man was shot in the wrist and right leg and suffered a graze wound to the chest, police said. A 16-year-old boy was also shot in the right leg.

Both victims are in stable condition at Stroger Hospital and the shooting appears to be gang-related, Estrada said.

Around 3:15 a.m., a 22-year-old man said he was standing on the sidewalk in the 7500 block of South Rhodes Avenue when he heard shots and felt pain.

The man was shot in his right leg and taken by two friends to Provident Hospital where he was then transferred to Stroger Hospital in stable condition.

Police said no one is in custody for the shooting and that it appears to be gang-related.